Impressing the press
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney did not amass a personal fortune of a quarter-billion dollars by being a spendthrift.
So perhaps it was no surprise that, when he invited select reporters to his vacation home in Wolfeboro, N.H., on Thursday for an off-the-record barbecue, they could only attend if they covered the cost of their food on their own (it was $25).
But the Fourth Estate didn’t complain, perhaps because everyone was too busy enjoying a catered feast of ribs, burgers, beer and ice cream. Reporters were even given boat rides on Lake Winnipesaukee by Romney and his eldest son, Tagg. Those in attendance included Carl Cameron of Fox News (and his two sons), Time’s Mark Halperin, the Politico’s Mike Allen, USA Today’s Susan Page, CNN’s Candy Crowley, ABC’s Rick Klein and The Washington Examiner’s own Bill Sammon (aka “Super Stretch”). So prepare for a week of soft coverage of the Romney campaign … at least until they’re done licking their fingers.
Romney campaign spokesman Kevin Madden added, “There are 478 days left until Election Day 2008, so it was just nice to take two hours out of one of those days and not think or talk about work. Barbecued chicken has that effect on people, I guess. Now the media can go back to hounding us and I can go back to shouting in my phone at them.”
